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Animus War book 2: World on Fire
Animus War books Preface Written by FenTheMudwing! Do not edit/steal! (Unless you just want to fix my grammar or spelling, which is pretty flawless) Characters Main Characters Valerian (WillowandtheWoof) Chris (Bullfrøg) Fen (FenTheMudwing) Redsnapper (Everyone) Dandelion (Europa99) Tar (Icetiger101) Pyre (The Streamy Gamer Cat) Willow the IceWing (WillowandtheWoof) Ember the Skywing (FenTheMudwing) Prologue Ember's first memory was of darkness. She was in a confined space, cramped, squashed, uncomfortable in the extreme. Her head was pushed up against her chest, her wings squeezing her ribs, her eyes shut tight. All around her were low voices, two, male and female. She immediately identified them as her mother and father. "What's taking so long?" her father said, anxiousness creeping into her voice. "Be patient, she'll come when she is ready!" her mother replied. "I know, I'm just worried," "Well don't be. You're making the baby nervous!" Ember's father sighed. She wished she could go hug him. She didn't understand, of course, what they were saying. Words, an utterance of regret, a secret yet untold, a turning point, a twitch in the threads, just like that. It started with a word, snowballs into a thousand words, a million actions, billions of consequences... deaths. This, however, was also just beyond her reach. She didn't understand time, how vital it was, she couldn't see that she needed to get out now. "We... we could get an animus... maybe get her to-" "Don't say that!" "Firmament, I was just saying it is a possibility!" Ember's father said. Maybe he was hurt, maybe it was just the stress. He wanted the dragonet to be out, he wanted his daughter... but maybe that wouldn't happen. "She will come out on her own!" Ember's mother (Firmament) wasn't stressed, however. She was ready for that dragonet to come out, a wonderful ruby red and golden yellow. She was ready for her little Ember, her perfect little jeweled eyed girl. "Okay, okay..." "Accipiter, just let it happen..." Firmament said, but her eyes said something different. A flash of fear, a hint of tension. "Firmament, just... consider... I know it's not ideal, but... I don't want you to get your hopes up," Ember's father (Accipiter) said with a note of sadness, his voice wavering. Firmament sighed, putting her talons on the surface of the golden egg beside her. Accipiter walked out slowly, carrying Ember's newborn sister with him. He paused at the doorway, not looking back. "I love you, Firmament," he said. A tear slid down the new mother's snout. Ember, in the egg, felt the presence of her father walk away. She didn't understand that he was walking away from a future with two children, a future where Ember had a sister. She didn't understand that by getting out now, she could change all that, but things change, possible futures drop away, just like that. Ember still believed in her parents, that maybe they would get her out of her current predicament. Firmament sighed, rubbing the egg softly. "Maybe Accipiter is right," she admitted to herself softly. "Maybe we'll just have to love the other one twice as much." She leaned down and kissed the surface of the shell. "Goodbye, Ember." She left the common nursery, feeling thoroughly extinguished. Ember didn't wake up until a week later, when she grew too big and the egg just fell apart around her. She never saw her parents again. The Sky Kingdom is a big place, and growing up in the reign of Scarlet is difficult. Ember became the apprentice of a minor silversmith, a dying industry in a tyrannous kingdom. It wasn't until she was five that she was given an opportunity to live something more, to be someone... that opportunity was the Jade Mountain Academy. Chapter 1 The sun was almost directly above them, marking the midday mark. Pyre's talons stirred up dust as she darted in Ember's direction. Ember turned around to her, an eyebrow raised. "Pyre, calm yourself," Ember said to her. Pyre reached them and slid in between Ember and Valerian. Ember scooted back a little, to make room for Pyre (who was freaking out, for whatever reason). What's she doing? What's happening? Ember thought. She caught Tar's eye from across the way, maybe he would know what was going on, but he was just staring, looking nauseous. "Pyre stop freaking out, the headache is making you delirious!" Valerian said, a devious smile plastered on his face. Ember winced a little, feeling this was a little harsh. Pyre held up her talon, breathing heavily. "Just a... second..." "Watch out for what?" Ember asked her. Pyre's knees buckled and she landed on Ember's shoulder forcefully. "Tar.. had a... a mini-prophecy," she whispered under her breath. Ember raised an eyebrow at her. "Um, no I didn't," Tar said, weaving his way through the group. "Y-you did, Wallflower was there, right Wally?" she said. Ember glanced around, but she spotted no Wallflower. "I-I-" "She just needs rest!" Willow chimed in. "I read this thing in this scroll that sleep deprivation can aid to diseases, so..." "But- but," Pyre stuttered. Tar gasped, falling to his knees. He was breathing heavily, his eyes glowing a faint green color. When he looked up, his expression was grim, and his voice sounded like a thousand dragons speaking instead of one. "Ember... kidnapped... midday... secret... Embers fly from the abyss below a captor with a face of snow with midday he comes and goes a secret revealed of betrayal and woe..." His voice came out all scratchy and weird at the end, like pushing boulder uphill. On that happy note, he collapsed on the floor, exhausted. "Well I'm all one for theatrics, but I've got things to do," Valerian exclaimed, a manic grin on his frostbitten face. He raised his talon in the air, the ravine somehow getting darker and darker. Some sort of black wind swirled around them. Suddenly there was a bending, warping feeling to the universe, and Ember heard Valerian's voice as clearly as if he were standing right next to them. "I enchant Ember the SkyWing," he growled. "To be sent to the Caves of Anguish!" "What!?" Ember yelled. "Where's that?" but her voice was drowned in the swirling mass of darkness. The world collapsed inward, into darkness, and unfolded again into dim, warm light, making Ember itchy and uncomfortable. Almost unbearable heat wafted over her scales. Her knees buckled, hitting a jagged stone ground of sharp points and edges. She inhaled sharply, then coughed as the smell of sulfur and smoke filling her lungs. Ember groaned, rubbing her forehead. She opened her eyes, scanning her surroundings. She was in an enormous cavern, the far wall almost beyond her visible reach. She was on a little ledge, attached to the cliff wall behind her. Below her little overhang was lava. Smoldering, bubbling, glowing magma. It looked ever shifting, bubbling then popping in an orange and yellow flash. Obsidian was gathering around the cliffs, where the lava had cooled a bit. Smoke wafted up from above, stinging Ember's eyes and filling her lungs with death. It was way down, possibly fifty yards or more. "Embers fly from the abyss below," The ceiling above sloped upwards, getting steeper and steeper as it reached the top, where it ended at a flat, circular ceiling three dragons across. The walls that Ember could see had other ledges, at sporadic intervals and heights. Most of them were bigger than hers. This is horrible, it's like a volcano in here, ''Ember thought to herself. A huge burst of magma exploded below Ember, like a lava geyser. She jumped and scrambled back, into the cliff wall behind her. There wasn't much space to save. Ember sat down, her head in her talons, a feeling of helplessness settling over her. Her friends would come rescue her soon... soon... Chapter 2 Ember must have dozed off at some point, because she woke up several hours (maybe?) later. She wiped away the sleep from her eyes and yawned, stretching out. She jumped as her tail drooped off the edge a little. She stood up unsteadily, the smoke making her a little light headed. And the shock. The shock, too. ''Maybe I can find a vent or something, and then I can get out, ''Ember thought. Her vibrant amber eyes scanned the walls of the cavern, trying to discern details through the cloudy black haze. There - at the far wall some ten feet above the level of the bubbling orange mass. A large rocky entryway, in a jagged circular shape. It was hard to see, but it looked like a long tunnel stretched out from there. Ember backed up, then ran and leaped off the ledge. It took a while to steady herself, but once she steadied herself she swooped down gracefully, her SkyWing instincts kicking in. She swerved around a hanging stalactite and dove sharply, the G-force stinging her eyes (plus the smoke). When she'd almost reached it she flared out her wings, coming to a sudden halt and causing the lava to splash at the cave walls. She flapped down slowly and landed gently inside the tunnel. Now that Ember was inside she could see just how long it stretched out. At the far wall the passage sloped downward so she couldn't see where it ended. She took a deep breath, her lungs exhausted from flying through the horrible "air." She took a tentative step foreward, waiting for something horrible to happen ''Do I ''really need to check here?'' Ember thought. I mean, everyone'll rescue me soon... right? Ember's mind was made up as a drop lava jumped up and sizzled on her ankle. She walked slowly and easily down the wide stone tunnel. The echoes of her talonsteps were drowned out by the steady drum of the magma behind her, but became much more noticeable as she padded further away. As she came upon the slope she discern more details. It was really steep, drooping about 10 feet before continuing in a quasi-level pace. The whole entrance was wreathed in stalactites and stalagmites, making it hard to see down. Ember struggled to catch her breath as she peered through the igneous spikes. She could only see a tiny bit of the rock below. Ember didn't really want to go down there, as she wasn't entirely certain would be able to come back if it was a dead end. Indesision, Indesision, indesision, Ember scolded herself. Just do it! There probably wasn't any other way out anyways Ember stuck one arm in, then another as nothing horrible happened. She then slipped the rest of her body through, tucking her wings in to make herself more... streamlined? Once she had gotten through, her scales were raw and covered in cuts and scratches. Ember hoped there was a stream at the end of the passageway, and she didn't wasn't to get an infection. That's what you're worried about right now? Ember thought to herself. How helpful. Ember shook her wings and peered into the darkness, her eyes straining to catch light in the poorly illuminated tunnel. The glow from the lava didn't shine much here, because of the drop. Ember breathed a small plume of of flame, sending pules of light into the dark corners and jagged walls. It looked like at the end of the passageway it widened into darkness. Ember sprinted for the edge, hoping that maybe it led outside, or at least fresh air. But she felt a stab of anguish when she was that it was, in fact, not an exit. The passageway opened up into an enormous cavern, almost as big as the nature room at the Jade Mountain Academy. Columns of volcanic rock stretched from the uneven floor to the ceiling far above. More (rather large) stalactites and stalagmites dotted the area, and a wide shallow pool of lava sat in the center of the ground, illuminating most of the whole cavern with a yellow-orange light. Volcanic ash drifted slowly from the ceiling, while embers flew from the abyss below. "Embers fly from the abyss below," She launched herself off the edge and glided over to the glowing orange pool, where hopefully she would be able to see more of the cavern. She was gliding at a steady pace, her tail strait and eyes determined, when out of nowhere one of the stalactites came loose and feel toward her. Ember spun out of the way, looking back as the megalith shattered into a million, reddish-brown rock fragments. She landed next to the pool, heat wafting over her scales. She sat down and caught her breath, her lungs not seeming to get enough oxygen. That was... sudden, Ember thought. "Understatement of the year," Ember grumbled to herself. "Hmm?" A male voice said in distance. Ember jumped, then stumbled away from the lava as she realized how far away from falling in she was. Ember lifted her head, listening intently. "W-who's there?" she asked cautiosly. "Oh come on, Ember, I thought you were smarter than this!" Ember narrowed her eyes, pivoting her head slowly. Something, something about that voice gave her the chills. She cleared her voice a little, trying to sound a little less... scared this time. "Do I know you?" Ember shouted into the darkness. Where was this mysterious dragon? He paused, or seemed to pause. "You really don't know who I am, do you?" "Um... should I?" "Considering you'll know very soon, I'll just leave you be..." "Wait!" Ember yelled. She lifted an ear, but heard nothing. She sat back down, her back slumped. A tear slid down her snout. She wiped her eyes and stared into depths of the lava, feeling paralyzed. Chapter 3 "Okay, okay, that'll work, just try not to move- like that. Don't do that," Fen’s voice said (or an echo of it, at least). "Do you really think this is necessary?" Tar asked. "Of course it is. We need to be sure Chris has no idea what we're doing. But, we also need to know what Valerian is doing, without Chris knowing what Valerian is doing. Besides that, we also don't know whether Chris's enchanted her hearing, too." "Well yeah, but..." "I-It's fine Tar, I-I think it's necessary," Pyre chimed in. Ember's head snapped up, her interest sparked in hearing her friends' voices. "It is a bit overdone," called in Willow's voice from what seemed to be the background. "... maybe a tad," Fen sighed. Ember stood up quietly and crept toward the source of the noise, her eyes tracking the jagged stone landscape carefully, adding little variations to her route. What sounded like a muffled Pyre sounded out, possibly signifying... honestly Ember had no idea. She saw a dim yellow light coming from in between the columns, blinding, yet subtle. Obviously not yet more magma, Ember sprinted down the uneven stone floor, her claws occasionally getting caught in little holes in the rocks. Ember screeched to a stop and flared her wings as she came into view of the center of the radius of light. Sitting on the ground, his back hunched, was Valerian. The pale yellow light was coming from a shard of black obsidian, slightly jagged, but mostly smooth and reflective. Smoke curled from its cold surface, forming shapes of different colors. Ember slid quickly behind one of the thick stone columns. On closer examination, she realized the smoke was curling into the shape of dragon heads, an amber-looking SandWing with leaf bindings covering most of her eyes and holding some of her snout shut. A chestnut MudWing with beige underscales sat in front of her, unwinding the leaves from around her horns, then more and more until it was only around her eyes. Using his claws to slice the extra off, he tied it around her neck. A pitch black NightWing shape with silver looking horns stood to the side, maybe looking jealous-y. Yet another shape stood faintly behind them, blue and white smoke mixing to form strait, jagged horns and a ruff behind her ears. Ember's stomach filled with a sort of internal dread, a tilt-y, upsidedown-y, reverse gravity-y sort of feeling she only recognized from a couple days ago when the stalactites in the Prey Center cracked, split, and crashed down, almost killing Pyre and Tar. In retrospect Ember didn't actually know what happened. She nervously glanced up at the spiky ceiling. "Okay that should do it. Hopefully Chris wasn't watching, but... maybe we should have stood behind her," Fen scratched his forehead. "Well, it's too late now," Willow remarked. "Ask her the questions." Fen sighed. "Pyre, can you hear anything?" "WHAT!?" "Okay, cool. Why does Valerian need Ember?" "I CAN’T HEAR YOU!!!" "I've spotted a plot hole," Tar observed oh so cleverly. "Um, okay, um - do you know if Pyre knows braille?" Fen asked Tar, half wryly, half serious. Tar gave him a somewhat ironic glare. "That's fine, I have an idea," Fen said, maybe rolling his eyes a little. He took Pyre's hand, turning her palm up. He tool one claw and traced out letters in her palm: W h y d o e s V a l e r i a n n e e d E m b e r ? Smoke letters popped up from where he touched her, swirling in all colors and shades. He traced it a couple (okay, maybe forty) times, when finally Pyre nodded. "HE... WANTS TO... SEE IF ENCHANTMENTS WORK ON LIVING THINGS... I THINK!!!" Ember backed up a bit, not wanting to hear much more. She did, but... it just got too freaky. Smoke letters popped up again, Fen tracing carefully, his eyebrows raising slightly. Everyone leaned in. W h y ? Pyre paused, then shrugged. Ember sighed, then flinched as the noise echoed through the enormous craggy hollow, bouncing off the numeral weight bearing pillars. Valerian looked up suddenly, his ears pecked up and swiveling. Ember’s eyes widened, all of he muscles tensed. She tried to move her talons, her wings, dart away, anything, but... No, ''Ember thought. ''This can’t be happening. I can’t move! Why can’t I move!? “''I never thought ‘stealthy’ was really your thing, but I guess no one is quite as you might predict, something Tar might need a lesson in,” Valerian didn’t turn to look at her, but instead let out a plume of fire over the mirror, blowing the airy figures of Ember’s friends into oblivion. “What’s that supposed to mean?” Ember asked. “Well, maybe if he wasn’t so... telepathic, he might know a thing or two about dragons.” Ember frowned. She was still confused. Valerian continued, “He came up to me a couple of days ago, about how ‘he knows what I might do’ and how ‘I’ll hurt people’ or whatever.” Ember started backing away slowly. ''How does Valerian get in and out? She froze. Maybe she could trick the info out of him somehow? One one talon, wouldn't prying make him suspicious? Ember didn't want to know what happens you you were on an animus's S-List (the S isn't for suspicious). Also, couldn't he just teleport in every time? But... his soul... But did he really care about his soul? Ember leaned around her current hiding pillar and peeked at Valerian's sloping figure. He was still staring at the dormant mirror, his eyes filled with a sort of hatred. Why? "Yeah..." Ember tested awkwardly. "That TAR, so... INVASIVE..." Ember was really just trying to... beat around the bush? She remembered Fen saying something about trying to find the reason behind someone's point of view. Ember didn't get it. For the first time Valerian looked up at Ember, for the first time since... actually, she didn't think Valerian had ever really looked at her. He never really took the time to look at someone. Maybe he's realizing this can't ''possibly be up to code with the Humane Society's Creed for Proper Enslavement? '' "He's driving me insane, Ember," Valerian said. "T-Tar?" "No, but he is a bit of a nuisance to my plans." "Then who?" Ember was genuinely curious now. Or so she thought. "My... employer..." "...W-who?" "He says you know about him." "What? Who are you talking about?" "Don't play dumb with me!" Valerian stood up and started walking toward Ember. "How was the exploring?" "...What?" "Trying to f-" The Obsidian Mirror vibrated. Ember stared. Valerian's voice seemed to fade out. It vibrated. It was like it was calling to her. Was that possible? It was just a mirror. And Valerian was blocking her way, so it wasn't like it was going to be easy. An animus enchanted mirror... whispered what she liked to call her "helpful" side. Ignoring Valerian, she jumped upwards, flapping her wings and riding an updraft of warm, lightly toasted air. She (surprisingly) lifted a few meters. Becoming unstable, she lurched (midair) at the pillar which had been previously hiding her. He latched on with the furiosity of a hungry tiger fishing in the creek. Her claws made the most horrible noise, like a cat's claws on a chalkboard. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?" Valeria roared. Ember leaped off of the column toward the Obsidian Mirror, opening her wings. A gust of hot air pushed at Ember's wing membranes, lifting her a little higher than she'd been hoping, and she overshot her goal. Out of her peripheral she saw Valerian's eyes lock on the mirror. Ember didn't know why, but it needed her. And an eye on her friends wouldn't be the most horrible thing in the world. Ember swerved, making a full U-Turn and coming back around, her arms stretched out to grab the jagged shape. Valerian started pounding toward it, but Ember had momentum. Valerian was starting to feel awfully close though. Ember tucked her wings a little, shooting toward the Obsidian Mirror. Valerian picked up his pace. Eyes wide, Ember reached out and clutched the mirror tight, before soaring strait up in an arc, stalling and gliding to the surface. Her talons were tumbling after each other as she sprinted away, to hide while she could find the tunnel, or somewhere else to hide. Or the way out, thought her helpful side. Realizing the 3-taloned approach to running wasn't the most efficient, stopped to clutch the Obsidian Mirror in her jaws (hoping she wouldn't break it) and kept on sprinting for her life... maybe not so dramatic, but it felt that way. She ran toward the wall, hoping to search for the tunnel where she came from. Her legs strongly disagreed. "EMBER!!!" Valerian called. The fear spiked her adrenaline as she bolted. Her eyes scanned the room. There was no way that she could find and get to the tunnel before Valerian got to her. There! She spotted a hollow in the ground, running along the wall closest to her. Rigor renewed, Ember bounded across to the long indentation, where she leaped up and down into the mini-ravine. "...Ember?" Valerian called. She heard talonsteps coming toward her direction, then fade away as Valerian gave up chase. She sat there for a while, catching her breath, then pondered over the mirror. How did it work? She sat for a moment, then whispered quietly "Pyre" Nothing happened. She sighed, breathing smoke. To Ember's surprise, the smoke conglomerated above the mirror, twisting and warping and shifting colors, until finally it settled in the shape of Pyre, leaf blindfolds still covering her dark green eyes. A beige talon lifted the blindfold up and over her head. "Have you tried talking to one of the Dragonets of Destiny?" Willow asked. "No," Pyre answered disgruntled, as Tar said "Yes!" at the same time. Tar continued, "They weren't there. None of them. it's like all the important dragons have gone on some gigantic vacation." "How is that possible? We just saw Turtle yesterday," Pyre said. "Well, he did rush off quite apbruptly, so..." Fen trailed off. "So... what?" Pyre asked? Ember couldn't hold the suspense. She remembered that Valerian had blown fire over it, and did the same. She was left with a chilling, slithering sensation in her blood. "Tsunami," Ember whispered, dreading the feeling, like spiders crawling over her scales. She tried to remember how she turned it on the first time, then decided on blowing smoke on the cool, glossy surface. As she did, the smoke twisted into the graceful sky deep head of Tsunami. The smoky figure held still for a second, then yelled "WHAT!?" Ember jumped, almost dropping the mirror. There was some muffled talking, then "Why wasn't I the first to hear about this!?" "Because we knew you'd react like this," Sunny's voice explained calmly. Tsunami sighed. "It is an important thing to leave out for almost two days!" "Well-" "So everyone else knows?" Suddenly a flash of orange flame shot from in front of Ember. She leaped back as she dropped the mirror, the flame extinguishing Tsunami's rant. Gasping for air, she grabbed the mirror and looked up. She was looking into a pair of large, green eyes. Chapter 4 "Found you," he said, clutching a shard of stone in his hand. He touched it innocently on Ember's arm, then threw it away without remorse. Does this guy care about his soul at all? He stared at her for a moment, then beckoned for her to follow him. Ember hesitated for a moment. Where was he taking her? "Come on, unless you wanna starve," He reassured her... she couldn't tell if it was a joke or not, but she didn't want to wait and see. She clutched the Mirror and bounded after him. Something Fen said about Stockholm Syndrome may or may not have popped into her head. Maybe she should still watch her back, just a little bit. 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